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I've actually been answering each spam call - and try to get them to stay on the line for as long as possible. My assumption is that they have some sort of CMS

I've actually been answering each spam call - and try to get them to stay on the line for as long as possible. My assumption is that they have some sort of CMS software and that it costs money to call. If you don't answer - they'll keep trying you. But if you do answer and costs them money - they'll put you in the 'do not call' list. Just my guess - but so far it has worked for me personally.

mwint 5y ago
I can confirm answering calls and using as much of their time as possible totally works. I’ve been doing this for a year or more now; I get excited when a spammer calls me now. It’s about a monthly affair. I have a bookmark for https://www.getcreditcardnumbers.com/ https://www.getcreditcardnumbers.com/ - I happily give them all the credit card numbers they want (the ones from that site pass the checksum, but of course isn’t valid in combination with a made up expiry and CVC). After a couple card numbers fail, they cuss me out, sometimes threaten my life, and never call again. My theory is they get flagged by their payment processor if they submit many bogus credit card numbers. It’s about a 10-minute investment once a month. Less time than I used to spend answering and hanging up on spam calls.
- ASalazarMX 5y ago
  This is brilliant. I don't know what a pissed off spammer with who knows how many of your info could do, though. The last time I made one angry for wasting her time, I received even more calls from other spammers.
  - mwint 5y ago
    I’m not concerned for two reasons… (1) Usually they think my name is the guy who had my phone number almost 10 years ago. I “correct” them to a fake name, but it shows their record keeping is not good enough to track anyone down. (2) If they tried to follow through on the death threat, they’d have a hard time getting a visa with “need to kill citizen” as the justification. Early on, I had a temporary bump in calls after doing this. If you stick with it for a few weeks, eventually you’ll get on enough “real” do-not-call lists that the calls fade away.
- vessel 5y ago
  Thanks, I've been wasting their time by keeping them on the line (at no cost to me other than the time I used to amuse myself with annoying them) but I didn't know about the credit card generator, weill definitely use that!
ASalazarMX 5y ago
It's a good strategy. They feed the autodialer with a list of phones, and when it hears human voice, it transfers the call to an operator. If you didn't answer it will call you several more times. If you answered but didn't speak, it will (probably) not insist for that day. My record is a call of around 14 hours. The autodialer called me after 10:00pm (supposedly illegal here), and there were no operators to take the call. I left my phone charging with the call active, and went to sleep, since the caller pays the call. Kept the call until I needed to go out, and I like to think that even if the call wasn't expensive because it was bulk price, maybe having a line busy helped slow down spam for others. I don't do that anymore because spam calls have multiplied, it would mean answering more spam than I'd like.
- blisterpeanuts 5y ago
  I always answer, and immediately mute and put on speaker. Some will maintain the connection for 30 seconds; others will never disconnect. If it's a real contact, usually they'll say "Hello? Blisterpeanuts? Are you there???" and then I pick up.

mwint 5y ago

I can confirm answering calls and using as much of their time as possible totally works. I’ve been doing this for a year or more now; I get excited when a spammer calls me now. It’s about a monthly affair. I have a bookmark for https://www.getcreditcardnumbers.com/ https://www.getcreditcardnumbers.com/ - I happily give them all the credit card numbers they want (the ones from that site pass the checksum, but of course isn’t valid in combination with a made up expiry and CVC). After a couple card numbers fail, they cuss me out, sometimes threaten my life, and never call again. My theory is they get flagged by their payment processor if they submit many bogus credit card numbers. It’s about a 10-minute investment once a month. Less time than I used to spend answering and hanging up on spam calls.

ASalazarMX 5y ago
This is brilliant. I don't know what a pissed off spammer with who knows how many of your info could do, though. The last time I made one angry for wasting her time, I received even more calls from other spammers.
- mwint 5y ago
  I’m not concerned for two reasons… (1) Usually they think my name is the guy who had my phone number almost 10 years ago. I “correct” them to a fake name, but it shows their record keeping is not good enough to track anyone down. (2) If they tried to follow through on the death threat, they’d have a hard time getting a visa with “need to kill citizen” as the justification. Early on, I had a temporary bump in calls after doing this. If you stick with it for a few weeks, eventually you’ll get on enough “real” do-not-call lists that the calls fade away.
vessel 5y ago
Thanks, I've been wasting their time by keeping them on the line (at no cost to me other than the time I used to amuse myself with annoying them) but I didn't know about the credit card generator, weill definitely use that!

ASalazarMX 5y ago

It's a good strategy. They feed the autodialer with a list of phones, and when it hears human voice, it transfers the call to an operator. If you didn't answer it will call you several more times. If you answered but didn't speak, it will (probably) not insist for that day. My record is a call of around 14 hours. The autodialer called me after 10:00pm (supposedly illegal here), and there were no operators to take the call. I left my phone charging with the call active, and went to sleep, since the caller pays the call. Kept the call until I needed to go out, and I like to think that even if the call wasn't expensive because it was bulk price, maybe having a line busy helped slow down spam for others. I don't do that anymore because spam calls have multiplied, it would mean answering more spam than I'd like.

blisterpeanuts 5y ago
I always answer, and immediately mute and put on speaker. Some will maintain the connection for 30 seconds; others will never disconnect. If it's a real contact, usually they'll say "Hello? Blisterpeanuts? Are you there???" and then I pick up.